The best places to go in San Francisco if you're stuck at SFO during a layover

Looking for some ideas on where to go during a layover in San Francisco? Here are some options along the BART line.

Looking for some ideas on where to go during a layover in San Francisco? Here are some options along the BART line.

Photo: Elena Pueyo/Getty Images

Photo: Elena Pueyo/Getty Images

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Looking for some ideas on where to go during a layover in San Francisco? Here are some options along the BART line.

Looking for some ideas on where to go during a layover in San Francisco? Here are some options along the BART line.

Photo: Elena Pueyo/Getty Images

The best places to go in San Francisco if you're stuck at SFO during a layover

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Layovers on a trip can oftentimes feel like drudgery of the same magnitude as waiting in line at the DMV. You don't have much time to get out of the airport, you have luggage with you and moving about in an unknown city can seem like big hurdles to overcome.

Fortunately, San Francisco International Airport is convenient enough to make a quick detour to the city possible. With public transportation conveniently connecting the larger Bay Area to the airport, even if you have just a couple of hours to spare — not including security and flight check-in, however — one can easily pop into the city for a bite to eat or some quick city exploration.

This guide is designed to get you out of the airport and into San Francisco via BART, with places to visit within walking distance. There are options for first-time visitors and return visitors, the high-end and the budget-conscious, as well as tried-and-true tourist experiences and places to blend in with locals.

If you have a trusty map app on your smart phone along with an explorer's sensibility — and are good at keeping track of time, so you can make it to your connecting flight! — you can make your forced layover more functional and spend that time in a new city ... rather than looking through social media for the umpteenth time until your flight takes off.

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Google Earth gives an aerial view of the San Francisco and some of its most famous landmarks.

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Check out the slideshow above for suggestions on where to go, and read through the extra resources below to help make your trip into the city easier.

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The thought of dragging around your carry-on luggage in a new city is enough to discourage one from leaving the airport during a layover, but that doesn't have to be the case at SFO. The Airport Travel Agency located in the pre-security area of the airport can free you up of any burdensome luggage for a fee, of course.

Price: $15-35 for 24-hour period (pricing varies by item and is subject to change)

Hours: 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m.

BART

Ditch the idea of renting a car if you're in San Francisco for less than 12 hours. Unless you plan on going outside of the city, a car won't be worth your time and you'll likely spend more time looking for parking than exploring the city. (Or even worse, dealing with having your car broken into.) Take it easy on yourself and use BART and its website to plan out a roundtrip to the San Francisco station of choice, and back. From the airport, travel time on BART should take 30 minutes or less.

Price: Varies, depending on station, but the website features a fare calculator.